Report Alleges Abuse of Immigrants at Private Texas Prisons

A report out June 10, 2014 by the ACLU and ACLU of Texas alleges undocumented immigrants live in abusive conditions at private prisons in Texas.

KUT

Undocumented immigrants live in deplorable conditions at private prisons in Texas, according to a report out today by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The report is based on years of interviews the ACLU and ACLU of Texas have conducted with immigrants detained at so-called Criminal Alien Requirement prisons. Inmates said conditions include overflowing bathrooms and infestations of vermin.

Rebecca Robertson, Legal & Policy director of the ACLU of Texas, says these companies are in business to make money – and federal Bureau of Prisons contracts are lucrative.

"In the fiscal year 2014 budget request, BOP asked for almost $700 million just to pay to private prison companies," Robertson says. "Given the rate at which we’re criminalizing immigrants, it’s pretty clear that BOP’s reliance on the private prison industry will only continue to grow."

Texas has the largest concentration of these private prisons: five of them, in or near the towns of Big Spring, Eden, Pecos, Post and Raymondville.

The ACLU is calling on the Bureau of Prisons to hold these prisons to the same standards as other federal prisons.

In a statement, a Bureau spokesperson says the BOP takes "seriously the allegations made" in the report. The BOP also acknowledges the overcrowding of low and medium security institutions.

To ensure that contractors perform in accordance with contract terms and conditions, the BOP has staff to monitor and perform inspections. An annual review also assesses the contractor's overall performance. "Serious findings identified during these reviews may result in monetary deductions," the statement reads.

Related Content

FORT WORTH — After several hours of debate Saturday, the final day of the biennial state GOP convention, Republican delegates voted to remove the "Texas Solution" from the party’s official platform, reverting to a more hardline stance on immigration. About 8,000 delegates gathered to consider the party platform and eventually rejected a proposed immigration plank that included language calling for a provisional visa program for immigrants. In its place, they adopted a plank that echoes the party’s 2010 platform. It does not call for a guest-worker program and instead calls for ending in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants and prohibiting sanctuary cities — municipalities that do not enforce immigration laws.

Overcrowding and disease at a temporary immigration detention center in McAllen has the U.S. Border Patrol themselves calling on congress for humanitarian aid. Because of the McAllen facility's temporary status, capacity is about 300. But this past week Border Patrol agents brought in 1,000 immigrants and the situation has Chris Cabrera with the local Border Patrol agent's union calling on Congress for help. "It’s a humanitarian-type deal as far as seeing these people going through what they...

Dozens of jurisdictions across the country have backed away from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportation program known as Secure Communities. But Travis County Sheriff Greg Hamilton is not backing away from the controversial program. And in response, a group of Austin attorneys announced Thursday they plan to start suing the county for its Secure Communities detentions. As ICE writes , the program "prioritizes the removal of criminal aliens, those who pose a threat to public safety, and repeat immigration violators." But critics charge the program has been overused and resides on shaky legal ground.